Wealth Gaps Rise to Record Highs Between Whites, Blacks and Hispanics

Analyzes 2005-09 trends in household wealth, net worth, and asset ownership by type of asset, geography, and race/ethnicity. Examines long-term trends in wealth ratios by race/ethnicity since 1984, wealth gaps within groups, and contributing factors

The Rising Age Gap in Economic Well-Being

Compares changes in median net worth of households between 1984 and 2009 by age of head of household. Examines contributing factors, including the housing market bubble, the 2007-09 recession's effect on employment, and longer-term demographic trends

An optical nanocavity incorporating a fluorescent organic dye having a high quality factor

We have fabricated an L3 optical nanocavity operating at visible wavelengths that is coated with a thin-film of a fluorescent molecular-dye. The cavity was directly fabricated into a pre-etched, free-standing silicon-nitride (SIN) membrane and had a quality factor of Q = 2650. This relatively high Q-factor approaches the theoretical limit that can be expected from an L3 nanocavity using silicon nitride as a dielectric material and is achieved as a result of the solvent-free cavity-fabrication protocol that we have developed. We show that the fluorescence from a red-emitting fluorescent dye coated onto the cavity surface undergoes strong emission intensity enhancement at a series of discrete wavelengths corresponding to the cavity modes. Three dimensional finite difference time domain (FDTD) calculations are used to predict the mode structure of the cavities with excellent agreement demonstrated between theory and experiment

Living Together: The Economics of Cohabitation

Analyzes trends among unmarried couples ages 30 to 44 living together by education. Compares median household income, poverty rate, composition of household income, and number of children with those of married couples and those without partners

Inside the Middle Class: Bad Times Hit the Good Life

Discusses survey results about the standard of living, sense of progress and mobility, economic behaviors, anxieties and aspirations, and social and political values of the American middle class. Also examines trends in demographic and income data

Vibrational overtone initiated unimolecular dissociation of HOCH_2OOH and HOCD_2OOH: Evidence for mode selective behavior

The vibrational overtone induced unimolecular dissociation of HMHP (HOCH2OOH) and HMHP-d2 (HOCD2OOH) into OH and HOCH2O (HOCD2O) fragments is investigated in the region of the 4nuOH and 5nuOH bands. The unimolecular dissociation rates in the threshold region, corresponding to the 4nuOH band, exhibit measurable differences associated with excitation of the OH stretch of the alcohol versus the peroxide functional group, with the higher energy alcohol OH stretching state exhibiting a slower dissociation rate compared to the lower energy peroxide OH stretch in both HMHP and HMHP-d2. Predictions using the Rice–Ramsperger–Kassel–Marcus theory give rates that are in reasonably good agreement with the measured dissociation rate for the alcohol OH stretch but considerably differ from the measured rates for the peroxide OH stretch in both isotopomers. The present results are interpreted as suggesting that the extent of intramolecular vibrational energy redistribution (IVR) is different for the two OH stretching states associated with the two functional groups in HMHP, with IVR being substantially less complete for the peroxide OH stretch. Analysis of the OH fragment product state distributions in conjunction with phase-space theory simulation gives a D0 value of 38±0.7 kcal/mole for breaking the peroxide bond in HMHP

Stable carbon, nitrogen and sulphur isotope analysis of permafrost preserved human hair from rescue excavations (2009, 2010) at the precontact site of Nunalleq, Alaska

Acknowledgments This work was funded by an Arts and Humanities Research Council (AH/K006029/1) grant awarded to Rick Knecht, Kate Britton and Charlotta Hillerdal (Aberdeen); an AHRC-LabEx award (AH/N504543/1) to KB, RK, Keith Dobney (Liverpool) and Isabelle Sidéra (Nanterre); the Carnegie Trust to the Universities of Scotland (travel grant to KB); and the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology. The onsite collection of samples was carried out by staff and students from the University of Aberdeen, volunteer excavators and the residents of Quinhagak. We had logistical and planning support for fieldwork by the Qanirtuuq Incorporated, Quinhagak, Alaska, and the people of Quinhagak, who we also thank for sampling permissions. Special thanks to Warren Jones and Qanirtuuq Incorporated (especially Michael Smith and Lynn Church), and to all Nunalleq project team members, in Aberdeen and at other institutions, particularly Charlotta Hillerdal and Edouard Masson-Maclean (Aberdeen) for comments on earlier versions of this manuscript, and also to Véronique Forbes, Ana Jorge, Carly Ameen and Ciara Mannion (Aberdeen) for their inputs. Thanks also to Michelle Alexander (York). Finally, thank you to Ian Scharlotta (Alberta) for inviting us to contribute to this special issue, to the Editor, and to three anonymous reviewers, whose suggestions and recommended changes to an earlier version of this manuscript greatly improved the paper.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Investigation of spiral blood flow in a model of arterial stenosis

The spiral component of blood flow has both beneficial and detrimental effects in human circulatory system [Stonebridge PA, Brophy CM. Spiral laminar flow in arteries? Lancet 1991; 338: 1360–1]. We investigate the effects of the spiral blood flow in a model of three-dimensional arterial stenosis with a 75% cross-sectional area reduction at the centre by means of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques. The standard κ–ω model is employed for simulation of the blood flow for the Reynolds number of 500 and 1000. We find that for Re = 500 the spiral component of the blood flow increases both the total pressure and velocity of the blood, and some significant differences are found between the wall shear stresses of the spiral and non-spiral induced flow downstream of the stenosis. The turbulent kinetic energy is reduced by the spiral flow as it induces the rotational stabilities in the forward flow. For Re = 1000 the tangential component of the blood velocity is most influenced by the spiral speed, but the effect of the spiral flow on the centreline turbulent kinetic energy and shear stress is mild. The results of the effects of the spiral flow are discussed in the paper along with the relevant pathological issues

Anxiety Associated With Increased Risk for Emergency Department Recidivism in Patients With Low-Risk Chest Pain

Anxiety contributes to the chest pain symptom complex in 30% to 40% of patients with low-risk chest pain seen in the emergency department (ED). The validated Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale-Anxiety subscale (HADS-A) has been used as an anxiety screening tool in this population. The objective was to determine the prevalence of abnormal HADS-A scores in a cohort of low-risk chest pain patients and test the association of HADS-A score with subsequent healthcare utilization and symptom recurrence. In a single-center, prospective, observational cohort study of adult ED subjects with low-risk chest pain, the HADS-A was used to stratify participants into 2 groups: low anxiety (score <8) and high anxiety (score ≥8). At 45-day follow-up, chest pain recurrence was assessed by patient report, whereas ED utilization was assessed through chart review. Of the 167 subjects enrolled, 78 (47%) were stratified to high anxiety. The relative risk for high anxiety being associated with at least one 30-day ED return visit was 2.6 (95% confidence interval 1.4 to 4.7) and this relative risk increased to 9.1 (95% confidence interval 2.18 to 38.6) for 2 or more ED return visits. Occasional chest pain recurrence was reported by more subjects in the high anxiety group, 68% vs 47% (p = 0.029). In conclusion, 47% of low-risk chest pain cohort had abnormal levels of anxiety. These patients were more likely to have occasional recurrence of their chest pain and had an increased risk multiple ED return visits